You've Got All You Need

Can you be successful with what you have and what you know right now?

I believe the answer is usually YES. While learning and growing is essential to our lives, I also believe that if we worked our hardest and went all in we would could probably be pretty successful what we know and what we have right now. The problem is that we are always looking for something new. We are looking for a magic pill, a super formula that will help us make shortcuts on the way to success. We don't want to lose weight by exercising and eating less and better...we want to take a magic pill that turns donuts into fat-free supplements.

The Bible was written a long time ago. The oldest book in the Bible is believed to have been, Job, written abou 1500 BC. Revelation is considered to be the youngest of the books written in the 80s or 90s...not the 1980s or 1990s either. So the Bible is old. We want something new. People have gravitated to the Book of Mormon, this was written in 1830. Or some want to go for the latest philosophy or religion like The Church of Scientology which was started by L. Ron Hubbard's book, Dinanetics, in 1950. Or maybe it's the latest postive thinking book by Tony Robbins or whatever Oprah is promoting in her book of the month club.

Is the Bible enough? Do we really have all we need right there in the Word of God to live a successful and happy life?

There are two passages I want you share with you this morning.

Hebrews 4:12--For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.

2 Timothy 3:16-17--All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.

The Bible is two things according to these passages: relevant and useful.

It's relevant...meaning that you don't need anything NEWER. It's alive and its active which means that it's still working. I went to a leadership seminar a few months. Two of the main speakers were John Maxwell and Cheryl Bachelder. Maxwell is the leading expert on leadership in America and is a former pastor. Bachelder is the CEO of Popeyes...she has turned around the company to the point that they were the second-fastest growing fast food company in America last year. Both of the these leadership experts used the Bible. They both found that the greatest leadership expert ever was Jesus. His words and actions were the best tools for leadership today.

The Bible is relevant.

The Bible is also useful for your life...it will change your life if you will do what it says. You want to have a good marriage...read Ephesians 5:22-33 and do what it says. You want to deal with your anger issues...Read Ephesians 4:26-27 and do what it says. You want to gain some real wisdom to deal with your life read through the Proverbs.

You want to know why the Purpose Driven Life has helped so many people? It's chock full of the Bible. When you read in the back you will find verse after verse after verse listed. When you listen to Warren's preaching you will find simple, Biblical preaching. Nothing fancy...it just works.

You have at your disposal a book that is certainly old and filled with some things you'll never understand. I won't either. But we can understand enough of it to transform our lives. Will you use what you have right now to change your life? You know enough right now to transform your life if you'll just do it.